Rebuilding Burned Bridges
by Awen Sofer
Summary: Naruto and Mizuki played with fire and got burned, successfully destroying the relationship they had and devastating each other emotionally. Is it possible to rebuild the bridge between them that they had set on fire through blind, stupid passion and misguided intentions? This is a follow up to A Love Story-Of Sorts. Mizuki is a female OC-not the male one.
1. Chapter 1

This story is a request and dedicated to a really nice guy. Thank you for giving me a boost of inspiration when I needed it most.

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Mizuki ran her hand through her chestnut-brown hair that curled at the bottom beneath her shoulder blades. She had taken down her ponytail hours ago hoping the headache would stop. Closing her eyes, she pinched the bridge of her nose which temporarily assisted with alleviating the pressure that threatened to launch her eyeballs from their sockets. Then she heard it. The soft patter of rain on the window behind her. She hated rainy days. It reminded her of that horrible night when things went to hell between her and Naruto. That was the time when their relationship had truly been devastated. The events that had taken place that awful night had caused a serious rift in their relationship, breaking both of their hearts beyond repair and destroying whatever possible chance of a relationship they might have had in the future. Someone once said, "He who burns his bridges better be a damn good swimmer." She wasn't a good swimmer. She was drowning: in regret, in anger, and in sorrow. If only they had handled the situation differently...but they hadn't. Neither one of them was more guilty than the other in how badly things had gone.

Mizuki closed the transcript of Jiraiya's latest book that she had been proofreading. It was the second one she would assist him with getting to the editor. She had been his proofreader, co-writer, and general assistant for two years. Standing to her feet, she rolled her head to stretch the sore muscles of her neck. Her feet sank into the cushy plush beige carpet beneath her feet as she took the few steps to the wall to ceiling window to look outside. It was early evening. The horizon had turned a sinister bluish gray color due to the sunset being hidden by the oncoming rainstorm. Trees and buildings made eerie black silhouettes against the gray-blue sky. The sidewalks were quickly being deserted by the people carrying umbrellas or hunching under folded newspapers to ward off the big fat droplets of rain that began to fall at an increasing rate. Pressing her forehead against the cool pane of glass, she watched as they ran for cover to hide from the storm. There was nowhere to hide from the storm that had been raging inside of her for two years. Pride and stubbornness kept her from returning to Konoha, from even writing a letter of apology to Naruto. She had forgiven Naruto but had failed to forgive herself. As misplaced as his intentions had been, he thought he was doing the right thing to save a job she had loved dearly. In her pain, she had become blind to the fact that revenge was a terrible and bitter choice that would only cause her more emotional agony in addition to bringing with it remorse and rage due to her own stupid action or rather reaction.

Jiraiya had been knocking at the door of her office and waiting for ten minutes for her to open it. He knew she had to be in there because she never went anywhere else. Work had become her life and what kept her from thinking about the past. Short of kicking in the door, he took the key out of his pocket to open it instead. After all, any damages incurred would have to be paid for by him since this was a rented apartment in his name. He had provided her with a place to live separate from his own in the time that she had been with him. As they were leaving Konoha after she had accepted his job offer, she had made it quite clear to him that their relationship would be strictly business from that day on. The night they had spent together had been a one time and one time only sexual encounter. Since then, he had not even ventured to give her a chaste kiss on the forehead. Sometimes he hated himself for taking part in the biggest heartache of her life. Other times he consoled himself that he was comforting her, and she had made her own decision no matter how bad it may have been. Men sometimes had a warped way of justifying things in their own minds. Because of that, he could see the reasoning behind Naruto's bad actions. He would never tell Mizuki that either.

Upon entering the office, Jiraiya could see her standing with her forehead pressed to the window. He watched in silence as her shoulders began to shake. She was crying but there was no noise apart from an occasional sniffle. Rainy days were always the worst for her. He worried about her on days like this. With each drop, the memory and anguish of the event two years ago came flooding back to her. Without her knowledge, he had been communicating with Naruto for the last year. It had been difficult to keep that from her since being his personal assistant, she knew pretty much every move he made as well as being aware of every appointment, every phone call, and every letter. The boy was just as irritatingly hard-headed, resentful, and damaged as Mizuki. How does one move two unyielding mountains? By chipping away at them bit by bit.

Jiraiya had finally convinced Naruto to travel to their city to see Mizuki. Now, all he had to do was convince Mizuki to meet Naruto. He had watched his beautiful assistant punish herself and stew in self-induced misery long enough. Due to their letters and phone calls, he knew Naruto was in the same predicament of being locked in emotional purgatory. Enough was enough. These two idiots had broken each others hearts so it was time to get them back together so they could heal them.

"Mizuki," Jiraiya called in a low voice to keep from startling her. A sorrowful smile covered his face as he watched her struggle for composure, wiping away the tears and sniffing loudly before she turned around to face him. It was almost comical how she thought she could hide the fact she had been crying when her eyes were red and tear tracks had ruined her make up.

"Yes, sir," she sniffed, grabbing a tissue from the box on her desk. "It's just - "

"Allergies?" he interjected, citing her favorite lame excuse. He raised his eyebrow in consternation as she blew her nose loudly.

"Yeah," she snuffled, almost chuckling. She knew that he knew she was lying but had decided to follow through with the game they had played many times before. Jiraiya really was a good man. Too bad his bouts of perversion overshadowed the greatness in him. Sometimes she felt more like an animal keeper than an assistant. "What can I do for you?"

"I forgot to tell you that I had booked a meeting with a new publisher tonight. He actually came to me to pitch an idea for a novel that someone had submitted to him," he began, pacing the area in front of her desk. He hoped he could pull this off. Mizuki had an innate sense of being able to see through his bullshit.

"Oh, no! How could you do something like that? You know the promotion party for the pre-sale of your next book is tonight!" she whined, barely resisting the temptation to throw the new manuscript at him. He was always doing things like this, and it never got any less infuriating. Scheduling meetings, making dates, and forming plans without her which he would forget had become a nasty and irritating habit of his. To make things worse, his forgotten appointments often conflicted with already scheduled commitments.

"I'm sorry, I really am," he returned hoping he sounded sincere. He was not sorry at all for lying to her this time or for what he was about to do. He had convinced Naruto to come see her. The last hurdle to his perfectly laid plan would be getting his obstinate assistant to the same place as Naruto for the meeting to happen between the two of them. Lying would be the only way to get this to work. "Could you please meet the publisher for me? All you have to do is listen to the pitch and decide if I should write the novel. I trust your judgment and you will know if it's a project I would like so I'm leaving the decision to you."

Mizuki sighed heavily, leaning against her desk as weariness fell upon her like a thousand pound weight. This man could make her so tired and wear out her last nerve. Sighing again, more loudly to show her aggravation, she closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths to calm her anger. "I'll do it."

"Oh, don't act like such a martyr," he grumbled, walking over to her. He put his finger under her chin, lifting it so she would have to look at him. He chuckled at her when she kept her eyes tightly clenched like a defiant child to avoid seeing him. "I know you hate these pompous parties anyway. They're just my thing though. To schmooz, to get drunk, to kiss the pretty bookstore owners so they'll buy my books and sell them..."

"You're a terrible, horrible man sometimes," she snorted with derision to hide her amusement. "Yes, you do excel at kissing ass and taking phone numbers."

"Thank you, my dear. I'll take that as a compliment," he said, backing away from her so he could fish a piece of paper out of his pocket. "Here's the place and time to meet the man."

"Queensbridge Hotel, the bar, at eight o'clock," she read aloud, giving him a suspicious glower.

"What?" He shrugged in hopes of seeming innocent, but he succeeded in looking more guilty.

"Is this a date or a business meeting?" she demanded, her glower turning to a steely glare.

Jiraiya gulped. He would have to use his best acting skills to pull off this subterfuge with any degree of success. "A business meeting. A few drinks and a yes or no to the idea. That's it!"

"Hmmm," she hummed, still not convinced. Giving him one last leery glance, she placed the paper on her desk. "I'll go get ready." She walked to the door, pausing before walking out into the hall. "But I'm warning you, if this is an underhanded plot to getting me back out into dating, I'll cut off your manhood while you're asleep."

Jiraiya felt faint. He did not doubt his spunky assistant who would be instilled with insane rage if this was a blind date and would follow through on her threat. If she knew who would be waiting for her, he was sure she would kill him at this very moment with the dagger shaped letter on the desk after she cut _it _off. Covering his most sensitive area with his hands, he cleared his throat before saying, "Please, go. You won't regret it."

Enduring one last glare of fiery disapproval and distrust, Jiraiya held his breath. Once Mizuki was out of the room, he could breathe again. He desperately hoped he would not regret this scheme. Or be separated from his most prized possession.

~...~

Mizuki sat at the bar, poking at the cherry in the bottom of her martini glass. The publisher was late, and she was pissed. Glancing at her watch, she pressed her lips together in anger. Twenty minutes! How dare he be late when he had requested this meeting? How unprofessional, how undignified, how uncouth! She would wait ten minutes before leaving. What a waste of make up, and her new dress! She had worn the midnight blue body skimming dress with tiny straps for the first time for this stupid meeting. Of course she had planned to wear it to the promo party but instead she was stuck here looking pathetic and desperate. The lonely businessmen and pathologically cheating husbands had imbibed a few drinks by now and were looking at her as if she were their next victim. No thank you. She shuddered, getting the bartender's attention. She ordered another drink then took a glimpse at the entrance. No one new was walking in and the vulture's were beginning to circle. Jiraiya would owe her big time for this. One more drink and she was going home. Her ugly sweats, a chick flick, and a pint of rocky road was issuing a siren's call to her. The sweet song of wallowing in bad clothing, girl power, and chocolate was irresistable and begging to be answered. In...she looked at her watch...eight minutes she would answer that call.

"Mizuki?" a man behind her questioned.

Mizuki straightened her back, waiting for the man to say something else. The voice had been strikingly familiar, sending an electrical buzz up her spine that spread through the back of her head. He spoke her name again, and she recognized the voice. She closed her eyes as the charge ran down her spine and pooled into uncomfortable warmth in the deepest part of her abdomen. She wanted to vomit. If she had been standing up, she would have fainted.

"Naruto," she whispered, willing herself to remain still.

"What are you doing here?" he asked, sitting on the bar stool next to her.

"I could ask you the same thing," she returned, feeling the heat of his body seeping into hers as he brushed past her sit before he leaned close to her. Jiraiya. That bastard! She was going to kill him!

"I'm not quite sure really," he answered, sounding as confused as she felt. "Will you open your eyes and look at me? Do you hate me that much?"

Mizuki slowly opened her eyes, turning her head to see him. She clamped her lips together tightly so she would not be gaping at him. He was wearing a navy blue business suit with a light blue shirt and white silk tie. She had never seen him in a suit the whole time they had been together. He looked incredible. The big eyes the same color of the deepest part of the ocean stared into hers. She had always loved those eyes. They had always held so much emotion, and when he would look at her...oh, my god. The feelings that overwhelmed them both swam in their deep blue depths as he looked at her. His hair had grown longer, making him look more like his father. His inviting pink lips, turned upwards into a smile that held so much sadness it made her want to cry. "No. I don't hate you. I could never do that."

"That's good to hear," he said, relief causing his tightened facial features to relax. "I've missed you."

"I've missed you too," she returned, picking up her glass to take a drink. When her hand shook so badly that the contents sloshed onto the brilliant mahogany surface of the bar, she quickly set it back down. Staring down at her hands, she chewed her lower lip. She wanted to scream. She wanted to cry. She wanted to beat his face in with her bare fists. She wanted to gather him into her arms and kiss him until their lips were sore. What was she supposed to do?

"Mizuki, I - "

"I'm sorry too."

Naruto blinked, unsure of how to proceed. To call this awkward and disconcerting would be a gross understatement. He had expected to be cursed, pummelled to death, insulted, or just plain ignored. It had taken him by surprise when she had not walked out of the bar after hearing his voice. Even was even more shocked when she did not scream what a bastard he was at the top of her lungs before slapping him silly. Since her reactions had been so far from what he had expected, he was not sure what to do next.

"Do you think we could - " He began to be interrupted again. She always had been able to practically read his thoughts and finish his sentences.

"No. No, I don't." Snatching the drink from the bar, she swiftly brought it to her lips and tossed it down her throat. It burned like fire, but it took the edge off of her rapidly fraying nerves. "No. We can't get back together."

"Why not?" he asked, reaching for her hand. This time he received the preconceived response. The only thing different was that she had slowly moved her hand away instead of recoiling in disgust to slap him.

"Once bridges are burned, they can't be repaired," she stated with a fatalistic attitude.

"You're right," Naruto agreed, sighing wistfully.

Mizuki wanted to cry. Her eyes burned and her throat was closing up in her effort to hold back the tears. It was becoming difficult to breathe. If only there was a way, any way at all, to work things out with him...

"But..." he began, pausing when she turned to look at him. He could see the tears brimming on her bottom lashes. Clearing his throat, he fought for control as he continued. "It might not be able to be repaired, but it can be torn down and something new can be built."

"Yes, but-"

It was his turn to interrupt her. "What I mean is, we can never go back to the relationship we had. In all honesty, I don't want to," he said, going on to explain as a single tear overflowed and raced down her flushed cheek. "I want something better, something stronger...a relationship that is real and will last forever."

Mizuki chortled less than happily. She used the napkin from beneath her glass to wipe away the tears that were flowing freely from her eyes. "I understand what you mean. So what do we do?"

"Begin again. Build a new relationship. Get to know each other. Base the relationship on something more than sex." He gave her a shy smile when her eyes met his. "What do you think? Do you at least want to try?"

"Yes," she giggled, elation seeping into her tear choked voice. "I would really like that." She stayed quiet for several minutes until he began to literally squirm in his seat. "So how do we do that? How do we begin?"

"How about this?" he asked, sliding from his bar stool and walking toward the door.

"Naruto, wait!" she yelled after him.

"Just hang on, I'll be right back," he assured her before disappearing out of the bar and out of her sight.

"What the hell-" she muttered in bewilderment and anger. She turned her back to the door, ordering another drink. Might as well make the best of it and get drunk. A tap on her shoulder almost made her fall off of her bar stool.

"Excuse me, lovely lady," Naruto said when she turned to look at him.

"What the hell - " she demanded before being cut off.

"Shhhhh...play along," he hissed, looking so cute she giggled.

"Okay," she whispered, giving him a big smile.

"May I join you for a drink?" he inquired after the bartender set her glass down.

"Of course you may," Mizuki answered, keeping her eyes on his as he parked himself next to her. "My name is Mizuki."

"I'm Naruto. It is so nice to meet you," he returned, shaking her extended hand. She could not help but giggle again. This was completely crazy but fun. Hope welled within her and made her happy. They began asking each other the typical 'getting to know you' questions as if they were complete strangers. It was a little odd and a whole lot of ridiculous, but it was really nice - like a real beginning.

"So, can I call you?" Naruto asked at the end of the evening.

"Sure." She scribbled her phone number down on a fresh napkin that the bartender handed her with a smile. She handed it to Naruto, watching him stuff it in the pocket of his suit jacket. "Please do."

"Can I take you to dinner tomorrow night?" His eyes sparkled with a new life and exuberance as he smiled at her. He took her hand in his, helping her down from the bar stool.

"I would like that," she answered, allowing him to lead her to the door. She liked the feeling of his arm encircling her waist, his hand resting lightly on her hip, while he steered her to the front door of the hotel. This really would a whole new beginning for them. In the past, he would have taken her to his room to have mad, passionate, animal sex with her for hours on end. She smiled.

"Good night, Miss Mizuki. I look forward to seeing you again," he told her, bringing her hand to his lips to kiss the back of it like a fairytale prince.

"Same here," she replied, giving him a curtsy just like the princess she felt like. She turned away to walk down the street. Her body wanted to go back, to go to his room, to be with him all night. But this time things had to be different. They had to start their relationship differently to have a different ending. Preferably a happy ending.

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_"Love builds bridges where there are none."_

Quote by R.H. Delaney


	2. Chapter 2

Mizuki sat at her desk, sipping her coffee in tranquility as she finished reading the final pages of Jiraiya's rough draft. She had used her trusty red pen liberally to point out mistakes and notate changes that needed to be made. She had been ruthless in her criticism which is one of the things he liked about having her edit his works. However, even she would admit she might have been a bit excessively harsh. Unfortunately, she felt justified after the stunt Jiraiya had pulled last night. Livid, furious, mad enough to kill, angry enough to chew lead and spit nails - none of these words or colorful euphemisms could quite do justice to capturing the true extent of her anger. Jiriaya was such a liar. She knew he was a liar, particularly where women were concerned, but this was her first time being the target of his deception. He had managed to carry off the lie while looking her straight in the eyes which added a certain degree of emotional devastation to the matter. The only time she had felt this betrayed was when she had peeked into Karin's office to see that woman and Naruto - well, she better not think about that or she truly would kill Jiraiya when he came in because she would be blind with rage. Closing the manuscript, she took her cup in her hands and turned her chair around to look outside.

Everything about the bright summer day made her think of Naruto. The color of the sky was like that of tanzanite, the same color of his magnificent blue eyes, being just as clear and multi-faceted as the gemstone. The sun was like a yellow globe of pure happiness hanging against the vivid blue background. Happiness. Would it be possible for them to find an ever lasting happiness? A real, sincere joy to be in each others presence rather than just reveling in fleshly desires and orgasms beyond compare.

Mizuki sighed, taking a sip of her overly sweet caramel latte. Her body had begun to twitch and grow warm with the memories of the great sex. But where had a sex based relationship gotten them? A smile tugged at her lips when she thought about their meeting last night. Their time together had been so fabulously platonically sweet. They had genuinely enjoyed each others company, acting as if they had met for the first time. She had always known his favorite food was ramen. He never knew her favorite food was onigiri with pickled radish. She didn't know Naruto had ever taken notice of her love of the color red. He also knew she liked peacocks. He did not know she preferred 'common' flowers such as daisies and carnations over roses. She still knew that he was insanely ticklish at the nape of his neck and had 'accidentally' and flirtatiously brushed her fingers across that sensitive spot a few times last night. He had returned the amorous gesture by dragging his fingertips up her arm to her shoulder with such a delicate pressure that it raised goose bumps from the barely perceptible touch.

Mizuki shivered from the memory. It was the good kind of shiver like that caused by the delectable thrill brought on by experiencing a first kiss. She finished off the sugary coffee, spinning around in her chair like a giddy child. Her stomach was already performing nervous cartwheels when she thought about what might be in store for her tonight. This morning Naruto had sent her a message attached to a white carnation. It had been sitting on her desk when she had arrived in her office. The plain white card had read: _A white carnation for you to symbolize the beginning of a new relationship, a pure love. Here is a riddle for you to decipher to find out our date spot tonight. I am not alive, I do not feel, yet I convey myriads of emotions of those who do live and breathe. I am sometimes beautiful, sometimes ugly, sometimes simple, sometimes complex. I will always make you see something new beyond yourself when you look at me. _The first thought that had come to her mind was that he had described their former relationship in a very poetic manner. But they had agreed to stay away from the past, choosing not to revisit it in any form whether it be talking about it or thinking about it. She tapped the card on her chin, staring at the hammered bronze tiles on the ceiling as she pondered the meaning of the riddle. Mentally listing all of the so-called dating hotspots in the city, it came to her - the art gallery. Art, whether it be paintings or sculptures or whatever medium of the artist's choice, could move the observer to feel so many things. While not alive itself, the artwork was based on a living subject, carrying with it all of their humanity and emotion . A self-satisfactory grin split her face as she buried her nose in the flower to inhale its spicy clove like scent. So they would be at the art gallery for their date tonight.

Mizuki heard heavy footsteps in the hallway. They were the footfalls of a man dreading arriving at his destination. She tossed the carnation in her desk drawer to hide it. The doorknob turned ever so gradually giving her time to arm herself with the unwieldy crystal paperweight in the shape of an ink well and feather quill. It had been a gift from her boss after she had completed her first editing job for him. Jiraiya was going to pay for his purposeful deception. The fact that the intention and outcome had been positive was completely irrelevant. Raising her hand to fling the projectile at the door, she hoped Jiraiya's reflexes were in top-notch condition this morning. She only wanted to hurt him a little, not kill him.

"Jiraiya! You idiot!" she bellowed, lobbing the hefty object toward him.

Watching the large man with wild white hair dodge the object with the sharp reflexes of a startled cat was comical. To be such a burly man, he moved with grace and speed. He apologetically fell to his knees, raising his peace offerings of coffee and a sweet treat to his rampaging assistant. His head was bowed in shame as he waited for her to take the gifts. Mizuki snatched the cup and plastic covered plate out of his hands to set them on her desk. Despite being in a kneeling position, JIraiya was still almost as tall as her. The raw strength of her ill temper made her seem ten feet tall. He cautiously raised his head to receive a stinging slap on his cheek.

"That's for lying to me, you old pervert!" Mizuki yelled, shaking her hand that throbbed from the extremely forceful slap. Although the skin on his face was unlined and smooth, hiding the true extent of his years, his hide was as tough as tanned leather. After delivering the corporal punishment for lying, she wrapped her arms around his neck to embrace him tightly as an expression of her gratitude. She held onto him, waiting for his body to relax from being rigid with apprehension due to her uncharacteristic show of affection.

Jiraiya had no illusions as to why she had slapped him. The hug on the other hand came as a bumfuzzling mystery to him. His arms slid around her waist when he felt her warm tears dropping onto his cheek.

"This is to thank you for setting up that meeting with Naruto," she explained, kissing him on top of the head. She squeezed him briefly before letting him go. Good old fashioned experience reminded her that it would not be a good idea to stay so close to him for too long. A pervert was still a pervert, and he was a pervert extraordinaire. He had done well in keeping his hands to himself for the last couple of years so she did not want to tempt him at this time. It would not be beyond Jiraiya to ruin a heartfelt, fuzzy, familial moment by doing something stupid.

"I trust things went well," he said, standing to his feet as she walked away. He smiled as she walked around the desk to take her seat so she could taste test his gift of atonement of a mocha latte and double fudge cake with whipped cream. Chocolate in any form had always been a winning choice to make amends and to calm the savage beast so he could return to her good graces.

"It went wonderful. We're going out on a date tonight," she mumbled around her mouthful of cake. "Oh, god this is heavenly."

Jiraiya could not help but chuckle at the woman as crumbs sprayed out onto her desk from her talking with a full mouth. To be so dignified and lady like, she could sometimes exhibit the table manners of a pig at a feeding trough. "He's bound to be impressed by your voracious appetite."

"I'm sure." She continued eating her treat paying the man no mind. Besides, who was he to criticize anyone for a bit of gluttony of any sort?

"Not to mention, he'll probably adore those new extra round curves you've given yourself." He had pushed too hard and crossed the line with that remark. A howl of pain ejected from his lips when she produced another heavy object from her desk that made contact with his thick head. He never did know when to leave well enough alone.

"It's your fault for bribing me with food on a regular occasion," she accused, finishing off the cake.

"Maybe you shouldn't have such a bad temper. I have no qualms about keeping peace at all costs, my dear," Jiraiya rejoined, making himself comfortable in one of the executive leather chairs in front of her desk.

"Is that why you set up that meeting with Naruto? To help me find peace?" She watched with a small degree of amusement as the man visibly squirmed under her penetrating glare that demanded a truthful answer.

"Partly." He stubbornly made eye contact with her before making his next statement. "You two idiots belong together. Neither one of you would have ever made the first step to reconciliation so I took that step for you. You're welcome."

Mizuki turned her chair around so he could not see the grateful smile on her face. She was so glad he had taken it upon himself to push past their pride to put her and Naruto on the path to reconstructing their relationship.

~...~

Mizuki slowly walked up the stairs to the entrance of the art gallery. The double front doors were glass with gold-colored metallic edges and handles. The name of the gallery was scrawled across the glass in such overly ornate letters it was actually unreadable. She already knew the name of the gallery: Experience Desire. The less than comical paradox did not escape her. She seriously doubted Naruto had picked the gallery for the name but for the artwork inside. The gallery featured the work of up and coming artists, the ones who showed promise of being the next big thing in the ridiculously snobbish world of art. Accepting the guidebook for the current exhibit from the dark-haired girl standing at the podium just beyond the door, she walked through the arch that led to the first part of the exhibition which contained photographs. Her short thin heels clicked loudly on the gleaming light-colored white pine floor. All of the walls were painted a basic bare white as not to clash or compete with any of the artwork on display. Sitting down on the bench that looked like a massive white rectangular block from a child's play set, she took a moment to glance over the booklet. The collection had been concisely and plainly named _Bridges. _She smiled. Apparently the universe had seen fit to set a theme to her present path on the road called life.

Naruto peeked around the corner of the half wall he had been hiding behind. The gallery was set up like a maze with pieces of walls in different lengths and heights to offer the most interesting as well as varied display spaces. His eyes skimmed over her sleek brown hair that was pulled back in a ponytail to her feet clad in white summer sandals. She wore white pants and a navy blue and white striped shirt with three-quarter length sleeves. By her style of dress, she appeared as if she had been prepared for a day of sailing on a yacht rather than traipsing around an art gallery. He had dressed in jeans, a freshly ironed white dress shirt with no tie, a dark blue sports coat that he had rolled the sleeves up to his elbows, and brown deck shoes. He would fit in right along with her on that day trip on a luxurious private ship. Quickly, he mentally filed that idea away for future reference for a date night. Pulling the pale pink carnation from behind his back, he walked out to greet her.

Mizuki could hear his muted footsteps moving across the floor, but she pretended to be so entranced by the pamphlet that she did not notice. She giggled when the ruffled petals of the pretty flower slowly appeared over the top of the brochure she held in front of her face.

"A beautiful flower for a beautiful lady," Naruto said, extending his hand to her. His fingers curled around hers to pull her to a standing position from the bench. In a burst of inspiration that took him by surprise, he broke off the long stem of the flower to tuck it behind her ear. "There. Now you're even more gorgeous."

How romantic. What had this man been doing the last two years? Reading poetry and scouring books written by Don Juan himself? Unfortunately, Don Juan was only a fictional legendary Lothario and seducer of women. Whatever Naruto had been doing she liked it. Mizuki had no idea he was such a romantic at heart. Perhaps he had been growing up, rethinking his life and priorities like she had done.

"Are we the only ones here?" she asked, glancing around the empty gallery. She was glad he did not give into speaking the sarcastic comments that she could see swirling through his brain behind his mischievously glittering blue eyes.

"The official opening of the exhibit isn't until tomorrow night. I wanted to give you a sneak preview," he said, pulling her forward by the hand he still held. He threaded her arm through his to act as her official private tour guide.

"Aren't you doing someone else's job?" Mizuki inquired, choosing to stare at him instead of the framed black and white photograph of the antique covered bridge.

"No. I'm the one who organized this little art show," he explained, smiling broadly with pride while she stared at him with obvious consternation. "That's what I do now. I'm an art curator. I decided if you can do something a bit on the artsy fartsy side, so can I."

Mizuki snorted from the less than cultured reference of calling his job and hers 'artsy fartsy.' She never would have guessed he had such a desire for the visual arts. However, he had always expressed great interest in anything visually stimulating so apparently he had used that personality trait to the best of his ability by turning it into a career. Her hand patted his arm gently as a delicate nonverbal nudge to continue the artistic journey in photographs.

"This covered bridge is located on, of all places, Covered Bridge Lane in Sheffield, Massachusetts," he explained, laying his hand over the top of hers.

There were hundreds of photographs of covered bridges from all of the world in black and white, full color, sepia tones, and original historical photographs that had browned and tattered with age.

"These aren't all from the same photographer right?" she inquired when they had reached the end of the photo gallery.

"Of course not. Many are not from photographer's at all but contributions from people who had found them in attics or basements or were handed down from their second cousin's uncle on their mom's side...four times removed," he added, eliciting a chuckle from her. He loved to hear her laugh because it was such a melodious sound that bounced along his nerves and made him feel warm inside by stirring up happiness within him. In the past, he had not given her many reasons to laugh openly, sincerely with great joy and zeal. He reached out to smooth his hand across her silky brown hair, affectionately patting her head as if she were a favorite pet instead of a woman with whom he was desperately trying to build a permanent relationship.

Mizuki had felt the hair on the back of her neck raise in offense by the harmless, doting gesture that at first had seemed demeaning to her. Refraining from unleashing a string of nasty curse words due to being unintentionally insulted, she instead gave him a provocative grin before lowering her eyelashes to slowly raise her eyes to make eye contact with him again.

Naruto had always liked it when she looked at him that way. She seemed so innocent yet so naughty at once with that coquettish grin in combination with her fluttering eyelashes. He forgot he was supposed to move on to the next part of tour featuring the paintings as she hugged his arm between her breasts while holding his gaze with her hypnotic, feline like green eyes.

"So what's next, my captain, o captain?" she inquired after they had indulged in giving each other an extensive, soul-searching stare.

"Hmmm, what?" he murmured, reluctantly breaking eye contact when she purposely waved the brochure in front of his face. "Oh, the art..yes, the art. Yes! That is why we're here after all, isn't it?"

_'It is? Are you sure that's why we're here?'_ she wanted to ask with a playful tone in her voice. She decided to be a good girl and abstain from blatant teasing. Old, licentious habits were hard to break especially when she was with the man with whom she had often pleasurably satisfied those libidinous habits. Mentally shaking herself to keep that part of her restrained, she pointed to the page that described the nuances of the paintings of bridges in various stages of construction, deconstruction, and reconstruction.

"Oh, right, well off we go then." He led her through the alcove that opened into a large rectangular room with paintings in straight rows at two different eye levels to cater to those of short and tall statures. All in all, it made a very unique presentation in addition to enabling twice the number of paintings to be displayed. There was one painting on display that was twice the size of all the others and had been put on a partial, half wall sitting by itself in the middle of the room. Naruto once again placed his hand over hers that rested on his forearm as he led her to that picture that was actually a massive sketch done in charcoal on a canvas. To him, this was the pièce de résistance of the show; the whole reason he had organized this traveling tribute to his desire to reconcile with Mizuki instead of hiding away in the art museum in Konoha. Taking a deep breath to gather his courage, he ignored his overactive belly that turned nervous somersaults when he began speaking. "I commissioned the creation of this piece myself from Sai."

"Sai," she mumbled under her breath as he her eyes skirted over the large field of white and black. Sai was an artist friend of Naruto's that she had never cared too much for. He was too quiet, too introspective, too secretive, too strange...just too much for her. She preferred the loud and boisterous type who always let everyone know what they were thinking or feeling. Giving Naruto a sideways glimpse, she smiled at the sunny handsome blonde who was chewing anxiously on his bottom lip. Grasping his arm more firmly, she turned her full attention to the picture. One thing she could never deny about the unusual artist was the impeccable way Sai was able to create a moment in time, preserving it forever for everyone to enjoy over and over again.

"Sai allowed me to describe this thought I had in my head. A picture so clear in my mind that I wanted the world to see it. One person in particular in the world," Naruto said, his voice growing hoarse with passionate emotion. "It's my hope...my dream...for the future...our future."

Mizuki had rarely seen Naruto so nervous. She could feel him trembling. Her body was beginning to shake as well from the vibration of his. She recognized the two people in the painting as her and Naruto. Their figures were small, only about three inches tall but highly detailed likenesses. A wide and dangerous river filled with hazards such as rocks, white rapids, and whirlpools ran through the middle of the canvas, separating them. From their respective sides of the treacherous water they were laying planks, patiently securing each one to the next to create the framework for a bridge - for a way to reach each other again. She jerked her arm out of his, her hands flying to her mouth to keep from crying out from the unexpected surge of strong emotions. It was the most gorgeous and heart rending picture she had ever seen. Naruto's deepest and most vulnerable emotions and desires had been captured by Sai in a stark, dramatic vision of black and white. The meaning of this magnum opus was explicit and beautiful in its obviousness. She felt as if her heart had been ripped out of her chest and was being squeezed in a vise. Her breath was coming in strained, wheezing gasps.

"Mizuki? Are you all right?" Naruto questioned her with extreme concern due to her violent reaction. He watched tears flow down her cheeks like the water of one of the small waterfalls depicted in the picture. The waterfalls represented the times when their emotions had overflowed, discharging unchecked like the outpouring of water over a cliff. The salty droplets from her eyes quivered and dripped off of her chin to soak into her shirt.

"Naruto," she gasped, keeping her shaking fingers pressed to her lips. They had both wanted the same thing so desperately with such an encompassing and passionate need. They both wanted to find a way back to each other but did not know how because of the many precarious obstacles they had created in their relationship. Pressing the back of her hand to her forehead, it felt cold to the feverish skin on her face. She had not anticipated on being overwhelmed with such a savage torrent of emotion. This rush of powerful feelings was even stronger than the one that had overtaken her last night upon hearing his voice.

"Mizuki, I -" He reached for her but was startled and dismayed when she visibly cringed and stumbled back from him. He had expected this kind of severe reaction last night.

"Naruto!" she yelled, slapping her hands over her mouth in shock from her volatile outburst.

"Are you angry? What's wrong? I don't understand," he mumbled, raking his hands though his already messy blond hair. Fearing he had blown the whole thing, he wanted to cry too, allowing the tears to fall as easily as she did.

"I'm not angry. It just...I just..I-I-I..." she stuttered helplessly, giving up on the prospect of trying to explain. How could she possibly explain something she did not understand herself? She was just feeling too much at once to be able to comprehend and sort through her emotions. "I need to go."

"What? You can't!" He followed behind her after she abruptly turned to walk away.

"I have to." When she heard him behind her, she instantly halted, spinning around to face him. A sharp cry of surprise and pain burst from her lips as she made painful contact his hard wide chest. It was like head butting a wall. She pressed her palms flat to his pectorals feeling them flex and move under her hands. Oh, god. Patting his bulging chest gingerly, she backed up a few steps to keep from sating her yearning to continue massaging his finely muscled torso before allowing her hands to meander other places. She put her hands behind her back, using one hand to hold on to the wrist of the other to fight the gnawing temptation to touch him. Physical attraction had always been like a sickness between them; their insatiable craving for each other had been the drug they could not put down. Things would be different this time. She wanted to make sure she loved him for the right reasons, for lasting reasons; not the temporary highs of ecstasy and orgasms. Taking a deep breath, she stepped back when he moved toward her. "Naruto, I'm not angry," she assured him, forcing her voice to remain somewhat calm and collected. "I'm just a little confused and overwrought at the moment." She took another cleansing breath before allowing a hint of a smile to turn up her lips. "You have no idea how wonderful this has been. That was the most incredible picture I've ever seen in my life. I've never..." She lowered her eyes, leaving her mouth open wide in hopes the words would find their own way out. "I've never felt something so intense in my life as when I saw that picture. It was truly amazing. Naruto," she sighed, rushing forward to give him a brief hug like a shy child before she stepped back to her original place. "Thank you. Thank you so much."

Mizuki spun on her heel to retreat to the door. Naruto stared gape mouthed at the empty air where she had been standing only seconds earlier. What in the hell had just happened? He was not sure if he should feel angry or sad or what else he could possibly feel about her excessively odd behavior. Putting his hands on his hips, he stared up at the ceiling as if the answer might be floating up there somewhere because he had no idea where to find it. Just then he heard the fervent tapping of her heels on the floor as she ran back into the room. He could not help but smile in return at her gleaming eyes and broad smile that were completely incongruous to her tear-stained, flushed cheeks. She looked so happy to have just been crying her eyes out. What the hell was wrong with women? Was she more weird than any other female or were they all this way? He had no idea.

"Tomorrow is my night to take you on a date. I'll pick you up at six at your hotel. Okay?" She was practically bouncing with joy. Her ponytail swung back and forth like a pendulum behind her head. Her gem green eyes were so earnest, so hopeful, there was only one thing Naruto could say in return.

"Okay."


	3. Chapter 3

Mizuki knocked on the door of Naruto's hotel room promptly at six thirty. She had called him at lunch to tell him when she would be coming. Glancing around the hallway, she nervously tapped the toe of her black leather ballet flat on the floor. After counting to twenty, she knocked again. One...two...three...she thrummed her fingers against her jean clad leg while her anxiety skyrocketed. Where could he be? She was positive that she had told him that she would be here at six thirty. What the hell was going on? She knocked again; so forcefully that it hurt her knuckles and so loud she would have sworn she heard it echo back to her. Was he even inside his room? She tucked her loose wavy hair behind her ear before she pressed that ear to the door to listen. Unable to hear any movement on the other side, she pushed her ear more firmly against the door in search of signs of life.

Naruto had accidentally fallen asleep while waiting for her. Therefore, he was running late getting ready for their date. He had just stepped out of the shower when he heard the incredibly emphatic knock.

"Shit," he grumbled, wrapping a towel around his waist. Without hesitating, although he should have, he went to the door. Yanking open the door swiftly to let her know he was not standing her up, he was greeted by a falling Mizuki. Of course he did the only thing he could do: he released the towel he was holding to reach out to grab her so she would not fall face first onto the floor.

Mizuki yelped helplessly as gravity did its work, pulling her toward the floor after the door was snatched away from supporting nearly the full weight of her body. She had closed her eyes and gritted her teeth in preparation for the imminent and painful meeting with the carpeted hotel room floor. Perhaps the carpet would offer some padding to soften her fall. When the unpleasant impact did not occur, she let go of the breath she had been holding. Then she became aware of the reason she had escaped her scheduled meeting with agony. Two strong arms held her securely and her face was pressed against a solid muscular chest. The moisture from Naruto's body had soaked into her red cotton t-shirt and was making its way through her bra when her brain finally registered the full extent of the circumstances. She forced her shock widened eyes upwards rather than allowing them to glance downwards like they had wanted to. Without looking, she was pretty sure he was naked. Looking up into his handsome face that wore an expression that was a mix of bewilderment, embarrassment, and amusement, she could feel heat rush from her hairline downward to encompass her in a full body blush.

"I'm not ready yet," Naruto said, his voice a bit higher pitched than normal because he was trying not to laugh at her obvious befuddlement and humiliation.

"I see...I mean, I don't see!" she exclaimed, pushing herself back from him. She covered her eyes with her hands so she would not be tempted to look him over from head to toe. Having seen his gorgeous face, the water from his wet hair trickling down his cheeks and nose to drip onto her, she would have been more than happy to get a glimpse of the full picture of him in his dripping wet naked glory. As she recalled from past experience, his naked body was pretty damn impressive. "I'll go wait downstairs in the bar while you get ready," she told him, abruptly turning away from him before the temptation to look at his tantalizing body got the better of her. As she hurried away, she grumbled to herself, "Oh, good god, I so need a drink right now."

Naruto picked up his towel with a nonchalant shrug of his shoulders. He closed the door after watching her scurry down the hall like a skittish animal. Her new sense of modesty was quite entertaining. He also found it alluring. He had always liked her sexual aggressiveness, her willingness to unceremoniously jump his bones whenever she damn well felt like it. But her different attitude toward sex, one of decency, propriety, and just plain bashfulness, made her surprisingly intriguing. Was her newly discovered prudery a turn on for him? Glancing at himself in the mirror, he received the answer in no uncertain terms as if he could not already feel the blood pooling in the lower region of his body. How very interesting.

"God," Mizuki sighed, finishing off her glass of beer and ordering another one. She had never realized until now that being a bad girl had been so damn effortless. This being good crap was beginning to wear on her. However, she had sworn to herself, even before a second chance with Naruto was an option, that she would change - that she would conduct her relationships differently. She wanted to be different more than ever since she was getting a once in a lifetime second chance with Naruto. Taking her second beer a little slower, relishing the ice crystals floating in the carbonated liquid, she delicately sipped the fruit flavored ale while waiting for him to come down. _'Just calm down,' _she coached herself.

Mizuki took another deep breath but did not exhale as her eyes caught sight of Naruto when he walked into the bar. He was wearing a form-fitting royal blue t-shirt and tight black jeans along with black sneakers. Well, damn it to hell. Her blood pressure rose significantly as he neared her. His eyes seemed to glow due to the shirt being the same color and enhancing them as if they needed more attention brought to them. She answered her lungs urgent request for air and sucked in a noisy breath as he handed her the carnation that was a faded red color. Her collection of carnations was growing. She noticed the color of the flowers was getting darker and deeper everyday. Dare she hope that was an unspoken cue as to how his feelings were progressing? Taking the flower from him, she stood up next to him.

"Shall we?" she asked, feeling overly warm and slightly woozy from her beer and a half that she had imbibed to calm herself.

"Lead on, Captain," he told her, giving her a smile as she brushed past him. His pulse quickened when her body grazed his. He would have never thought a nonsexual touch could be so exciting.

"Is walking okay? It's only a few blocks from here. Then we can walk to the park for the second half of the date," she said, walking ahead of him slightly as she steered him to the right after exiting the hotel.

"Second half huh?" he murmured, stuffing his hands into his jeans pockets. He gave her a sheepish grin when she turned to look at him. "Sounds like you've got something pretty special planned."

"Well, I doubt it will compare with your art exhibit, but I hope you'll like it," she returned, skipping slightly as if she were a giddy little girl.

"I'm sure I will like it." Being anywhere with her was a wonderful thing at the moment. He began wondering when he should her hold her hand. A voice from somewhere deep within mocked him for being so stupid and childish. This was the woman he used to fuck senseless and now he was pondering the correct timing of hand holding. Then another voice within piped up to tell him he was doing the right thing and reminded him it was necessary to take things slow to make their relationship work.

"Naruto?" Mizuki called to him. He seemed to have zoned out, getting lost in outer space somewhere. She wondered what he could possibly be thinking about that would require such extreme concentration.

"Hmm?" he mumbled, slowly resurfacing from his deep thoughts. He glanced around, seeing that they had stopped in front of a building that appeared to be a bakery or some sort of restaurant. "We're here?"

"We're here," she confirmed, walking up the brick front steps that led to the door.

The building was tall and thin, made of red brick with white shutters, window panes, and front door to give it a crisp, clean look. The first floor was a bakery. The second floor housed their destination, the cooking academy. The owner of the bakery, who lived on the third floor, offered cooking lessons once a week. Since Naruto loved food, ramen being his favorite and pretty much everything else being his second favorite, Mizuki had decided that this might be a good date night for them. Once they finished preparing the food, she planned to pack it up and take it to the park for a late night picnic. Earlier she had brought over a picnic basket and a bottle of wine their meal.

Naruto stared at the worn and dull hardwood steps beneath his feet to keep from staring at her nicely shaped derriere that swung back and forth in a very enticing manner as she mounted each step. He was determined to be hungry for food and food only because that was why they were here after all. This place smelled absolutely sinful. The scent of freshly baked bread punctuated with the sugary smell of cookies and cakes laced the air making him drool. Mizuki was turning out to be an even more evil temptress than he remembered her to be. She had expanded her repertoire beyond sex to include food. Not to mention her coy little glances and cute little blushes that had a tendency to send him over the edge. All of this dating stuff was fantastically exhilarating. Catching a glimpse of Mizuki's profile as she talked with the woman he assumed would be teaching the class, made him blush from a sudden unexpected infilling of pride. He had always known she was beautiful but had never really noticed the simple things about her that made her beautiful. The way she held her body showed that she was completely comfortable and confident in who she was. The way she tucked the unruly waves of chestnut-brown hair behind her ear exhibited elegance more than insecurity. Her eyes were wide open and innocent, green as the new leaves in spring, and incredible when she glanced over at him before introducing him to the teacher.

"Mrs. Renard, this is Naruto," Mizuki announced with pride equal to his evident in her voice. Thankfully, Mrs. Renard did not ask for a further explanation as to who Naruto was to Mizuki. At this time, she would be hard pressed to give a clear answer because she was still not sure herself.

Mrs. Renard was a friendly acquaintance, one of the first people she had gotten to know after moving to this city. Renard's Bakery had quickly become Mizuki and Jiraiya's favorite place for breakfast and lunch. The owner called her favorite customers by name and she had learned their names almost immediately. She was a grandmotherly older woman with her gray hair affixed to the top of her head in a bun. Short and pudgy with a round face and friendly smile, she was everything anyone thought a grandmother should be. Soft spoken and kind, she was thoughtful and helpful dishing out not only great food but timely advice. She gave Mizuki a conspiritorial wink and a pat of approval on the shoulder in response to her blond headed beau. Whatever he and Mizuki accomplished in their relationship, Mrs. Renard hoped it would be fantastic. As the other members of the class, who happened to be three other couples, filtered into the room, she announced it was time to begin.

Naruto and Mizuki took their places at the fully equipped kitchen station at the front where the half packed picnic basket sat waiting for the food. A dozen wine glasses, a cutting board, a wooden block complete with knives, measuring cups, spoons, bowls, and other various types of cooking paraphernalia covered the calico brown colored granite counter. A small refrigerator, a full-sized oven, microwave, a column of drawers, and shelves full of more cooking implements filled the space under the multicolored counter top. There were also two bar height stools without backs for them to sit down on. After pulling one over for Mizuki and helping her get situated, Naruto perched on his that was sitting right next to hers. For the next thirty minutes they were treated to a lecture on how to properly pair wine and cheese together for the best taste combinations. They were also able to take a taste test of each wine and cheese pairing which explained the need for so many wine glasses. Once the virtues of wine and cheese had been fully explored and their picks were stuffed into the basket, Mrs. Renard continued to the next lesson: preparing a chocolate raspberry tart for dessert. There would be some cooling involved for several of the preparations so it would be imperative that dessert be started first.

Naruto observed with interest as Mizuki expertly measured the ingredients. When she handed the bowl to him to stir the ingredients for the chocolate mousse, he eagerly accepted. He whisked while she kneaded with her hands the flour, butter, and sugar for the crust.

"Don't forget to try your food. It's the best way to judge the quality of it. There is no replacement for the old-fashioned taste test," Mrs. Renard announced, strolling from station to station to check the contents of her students bowls. She paused by Mizuki, looking over the small round silver frames of her glasses into the mixing bowl. "That's fine. Don't over knead that, dear, or it will be like a shortbread cookie instead of nice flaky pastry." She peeked into Naruto's bowl next, dipping her finger in for the trusty taste test. Her eyes rolled as if she were in ecstasy then popped open wide to look up at the tall blond man beside her. "That is excellent! So fluffy! That texture is amazing." Her pale, cornflower blue eyes slid down from his face to his toned bicep and triceps that were nicely displayed by the short sleeve t-shirt he was wearing. Her tiny hand patted his muscular arm as she released a loud sigh of longing. "It must be due to the strength of these lovely, lovely arms of yours young man. Keep up the good work."

Mizuki bit her lower lip until she tasted blood to keep from laughing but it was only temporary. The stab of pain could not make her withhold the snort that barely stifled what would have been a deafening guffaw of hilarity. She turned her attention to pressing the pastry into the single serving pans while trying to ignore the harsh glare from her cooking partner.

"You need to put that in the refrigerator," she told him when she grew a bit squeamish under his harsh scrutiny. "You wouldn't want it to lose all that fluffiness you know."

"Shut up," he muttered, following her advice. He kicked the refrigerator door closed behind him.

Mizuki wanted to giggle again when she saw the glowing red spots set on the apples of his cheeks. She wanted to kiss him on the nose because he looked so darned cute at that moment. Since they were in the middle of a group of people she resisted the urge to indulge in a public display of affection. Besides, Mrs. Renard was moving on to the next dish so they needed to pay attention. After popping the crusts in the oven to bake, she began gathering the necessary ingredients for the new dish they were preparing which were bite size quiches.

"Who eats this crap?" Naruto complained, cracking the eggs to drop them into the bowl she had set in front of him.

"You're going to eat this crap that's who. Don't be such a baby," she snapped, playfully kicking him in the shin.

"But it's so little and dainty and..." He paused, wrinkling his nose as he looked at her. "Girly."

"But I thought you liked girly things," she retorted, bending over to get the asparagus and green onions out of the refrigerator. "Namely me."

"Well, damn," Naruto muttered, trying not to stare at her behind. She had him there. He did like girly things especially her girly things. Clearing his throat, he began beating the eggs into a yellow froth.

"Oh, yes, you handsome young devil," she purred, squeezing his flexing bicep as he whipped the eggs. "Use those lovely muscles."

"Mizuki, I swear - " His insult was cut off by Mrs. Renard issuing some tips on how to best chop up the vegetables for the tiny quiches. He was having quite a bit of fun trading barbs with his cooking partner while they prepared their dinner. The teacher seemed to gravitate more toward their station than the others so they had to keep their flirtatious insults to a minimum.

"I think Mrs. Renard has a crush on you," Mizuki whispered as she wrapped the thin slices of prosciutto around the figs that her teammate had cut in half. She withdrew the tiny paddle from the jar of honey, swiftly twisting it to keep from drizzling the sticky substance all over the counter instead of the plateful of wrapped figs.

"Can I try one?" Naruto asked as he watched the thick golden fluid spread across the delicious looking meat covering the fruit.

"Sure. Open your mouth," she ordered, holding one hand under the honey soaked food as she brought it to his mouth. Her fingers maneuvered the food inside his waiting mouth, putting it in the middle of his tongue. Before she could withdraw her fingers, his lips closed around them. Her eyes met his as he gently sucked the syrupy sweet honey off of her fingers.

Mizuki closed her eyes, biting her lip to withhold the moan that threatened to spring forth. Her body burned, and unwanted thoughts flooded her mind. This was an unforeseen complication. She never dreamed a cooking class could be so arousing. Once she felt the pressure of his sucking weaken, she pulled her fingers free from his mouth.

"You two kids should pack up your food and get going. It's getting late," Mrs. Renard informed them as she watched the sexual tension grow between the two young people.

"She's right. We better go," Mizuki agreed, feeling slightly fuzzy headed as if she were waking from a dream. She was grateful for Mrs. Renard's assistance with wrapping the food and filling the basket.

"You two have fun," Mrs. Renard said, handing the basket to Naruto. She slapped him on the behind after he turned to walk away.

"Whoa!" he exclaimed, rising up on his tiptoes from the startling force with which the woman had delivered the slap on his ass. He felt betrayed that Mizuki had left him and was already half way down the stairs.

"Mizuki!" the older woman called to her down the stairs.

"Yes, ma'am?" She turned back at the bottom of the stairs to look up at the little old grandma who was an unlikely pervert.

"Please bring your young man back to another class. I immensely enjoyed being able to see him."

"Y-yes, m-ma'am," she stuttered while trying to suppress her laughter.

"Don't you even think about it," Naruto hissed, taking her by the arm to lead her out of the bakery.

"Oh, come on. She's just a harmless flirt," Mizuki chided him as she watched the rosy color blossom on his cheeks again.

"Easy for you to say," he pouted, letting go of her arm. He massaged his butt cheek that was still stinging from Mrs. Renard's slap. "That little old woman can pack a wallop. I feel violated."

Mizuki almost felt sorry for him. Although he may be terribly embarrassed and feel a bit offended, he had probably made that sweet yet slightly depraved woman's day. She thought it was awfully good-hearted of him to take it all in stride and not be upset or angry with Mrs. Renard. She elbowed him genially, giving him a big smile.

"Hey, you're a good guy. You took all of that very well. Thank you for being so sweet to her," she said, allowing her arm to brush his as they walked.

Naruto waited until his knuckles accidentally-on-purpose glided across hers. He used that point of contact as a cue to seize her hand. An arrogant smile tugged his lips upward when he heard her sharp inhale as his palm encompassed her hand. The blood raced through his body making him feel a bit asinine for having such a ridiculously intense reaction to an innocent gesture. However, he did thoroughly enjoy the flow of excitement and found the reason for it to be refreshing and quite nice. Sometimes during their past attempts at relationships, he would go numb from all of the sexually charged adrenaline constantly inundating his system. Then they would begin taking chances, doing stupid things to hurt each other by committing outrageous sexual acts to achieve that next orgasmic high. After a while, it seemed like nothing was never enough to satisfy them or make them feel that enchanting thrill. Then their relationship would wither and die a pathetically tragic death. Stealing a glimpse of the woman who walked next to him humming happily to herself, he vowed that he would not let that happen again. He wanted her to always be enough for him because he did not want anyone else.

Mizuki led Naruto to the park that was about five blocks past his hotel in the other direction. Street lights imparted a hazy romantic glow in round pools of white luminescence on the sidewalk. She gripped his hand tightly, not wanting to let him go. It was nice holding hands like this. Never before had such a basic, childish action brought her so much joy. The main reason for her happiness over the small token of affection was because of the man giving it. As they entered the park, she slowed her steps to lengthen the time before she would have let go of his hand. The light illuminating the park was a mild golden color from the old-fashioned gas lamps that lined the concrete paths. Since it was way after sunset, the park had been abandoned except for the occasional couple that passed and nodded. They strolled together without saying a word as she led him to the picnic spot she had picked out before hand. The spot was in the middle of the flower garden: the green grassy center from which the various kinds of blossoms had been planted in ever-widening circles. There were four separate paths that led to the open area so the flowers would not be crushed under foot. It was like an island surrounded by a colorful sea of gorgeous blooms. Leading him up one of the paths, she grudgingly took her hand from his, waiting for him to set the basket on the ground. She pushed aside the food to get to the blanket. Handing Naruto one side of the green and brown plaid blanket, they lowered it to the ground being careful to keep the wrinkles smoothed out. They sat down in the middle putting the basket between them.

"I'm starving," Naruto announced, picking pieces of food out of each package as he opened them. He fished out the corkscrew from the bottom of the basket to uncork the bottle of wine. Taking the glasses she handed him, he filled one halfway before handing it back to her. In exchange, she handed him a plate loaded down with the delectable finger foods they had made.

Mizuki set her plate on the blanket, half heartedly picked at the food while sipping her wine. She stole the occasional glance at Naruto who was enthusiastically consuming the food he had criticized earlier. She dared to interrupt his feeding frenzy by holding out her glass for more wine. After filling his cheeks full of food until he looked like a chipmunk, he gladly refilled her glass.

"Storing up for the winter?" she asked with a mischievous grin.

"This is good stuff," he responded though it was muffled by all of the food in his mouth. He looked at her food that she had barely touched. "Are you going to eat that?"

"Be my guest." She pushed the food over to him then lay back on the blanket to stare up at the sky.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah. I'm just enjoying the moment."

"Are you afraid it will end?"

Mizuki turned her head to look at Naruto who had suddenly grown very serious. He was staring at her and not eating anymore. She reached out to him, patting his knee reassuringly. With a smile she told him, "Of course it will end. But then it will just lead to more and better moments, right?"

Naruto smiled with relief and happiness. He was glad she felt that way. At first he was afraid she was having second thoughts and had decided she did not want to do this anymore. He set his plate aside and moved the basket off into the grass so he could lie down beside her. After positioning himself comfortably on his back, he once again took her hand in his. Since they were far away from any of the lamps, they were able to see the white stars dotting the black sky. "So you think there is a future for us?"

"Mm-hmm," she replied, squeezing his hand. "A week ago, while we were still far apart and had not even talked to each other yet, I would have given us a snowball's chance in hell of being able to reconcile. But now, I believe we can really do this." She propped herself up on her elbow, looking down at his face. Pressing her fingers to his cheek, she held his gaze until they both felt as if their insides were quivering with anticipation. Just as she was about to move her lips toward his, a chatty, giggling couple walked past immediately destroying the spell they had fallen under. Since that moment had been shattered, she lay her head on his shoulder to snuggle up next to him instead of kissing him.

Naruto encircled her shoulders with his arm to securely hold her close to him. He kissed the top of her head, inhaling the pleasing scent of jasmine. She still used the same shampoo. Some things never changed. But then change was sometimes good like the change in their approach to their relationship and each other. Instead of treating each other like sexual objects to be used and tossed aside on a whim, they were seeing each other as human beings with thoughts and feelings, with desires and needs other than sex. They both liked the new discoveries they were making about each other and wanted to learn more.

"A shooting star," he announced after seeing the flash of light streak across the sky.

Mizuki gasped, sitting up to stare the sky just another arrow of brilliance pierced the darkness above them. "It's a meteor shower!" she exclaimed, clapping her hands as more brief flashes lit up the night.

"So if we make a wish on each one, will they all come true?" he asked, giving her his patent wide goofy grin.

"I suppose so. As long as we don't tell each other our wishes they'll come true. You have that many wishes?" she inquired, not taking her eyes off of the sky.

"No," he replied, taking her chin between his thumb and forefinger to turn her face to make her look at him. "Just one."

Without saying another word, they were both aware of what that one wish was because they both held it dear to their hearts. They finished off the bottle of wine while watching the light show provided by nature overhead. Afterwards, they tossed everything into the picnic basket to leave the park.

"Mizuki, will you go out with me again tomorrow night?" he asked nervously as they walked back to his hotel.

"I'd love to." Her heart beat so fiercely in her chest she was afraid it might break through her ribcage. One day she hoped he would ask her to spend the rest of her life with him. Until then, she would have to be content with taking one small step at a time toward forever.


	4. Chapter 4

Jiraiya walked into his personal assistant's office the next morning to nearly be knocked down by the overwhelming spicy, clove like scent of carnations. Glancing around her office, he feared she had decided to forsake working with him to open a floral shop. Half a dozen vases containing at least a dozen flowers each sat in every corner. A plain white vase containing carnations the color of her rich red lipstick sat on a stack of manuscripts on her desk. He smiled to see her sitting in her chair with it leaned back, her feet on the desk as she read over an old manuscript that he had abandoned for publishing. Sometimes she liked digging back through his forgotten writings to encourage him to turn it into something new and wonderful. Speaking of something new and wonderful, he was curious as to how the 'getting to know Naruto all over again' was going. If he had to guess, he would say it was going quite well given the secretive smile that curled her lips and the tender romantic expression that made her emerald-green eyes glitter with happiness. He also noticed the light blush she wore on her cheeks that matched the color of the baby girl pink carnations in the sky blue vase on the small round table in front of the window. A mild, pleasant breeze blew in through the open window stirring up the scent of the flowers that lay heavily in the room. He watched with great interest as she closed her eyes to inhale deeply before releasing a sigh of sincere contentment and joy. A smile bordering on a smirk of smugness touched his face. Taking it upon himself to play matchmaker, or rather mediator, between her and Naruto had been his best idea ever.

"So things are going well?" he asked, covering his mouth to keep from laughing. When he disturbed her from her reverie, she yelped and jumped, almost flipping her chair over backwards. To keep from hitting the floor, she threw herself forward which resulted in her head butting her desk. To be so beautiful and often snobby, the girl could be pathetically graceless and downright comical at times. He supposed her clumsiness, hidden behind a haughty exterior, was one of the things that had endeared her to him through the years. In the beginning, he had wanted to love her and keep her as a girlfriend. He realized she had made the right decision for both of them for flatly rejecting such a relationship with him. Besides, they both knew he never would have been faithful to her anyway. He had no illusions about himself and was well aware of just what kind of hopeless lecher he truly was. No, that kind of relationship would not have worked at all. He preferred her much more as a friend and coworker. His smile morphed into a broad grin of pride as he looked at her. After all, he needed someone to keep him under control to save him from himself which she accomplished brilliantly. He viewed his playing the liaison of love as his way of paying her back for what she had done for him.

"Yes, things are going quite wonderfully for Naruto and I," Mizuki answered, her face pinched into an expression of pain as she rubbed her reddened forehead. "I hope that doesn't leave a bump."

"If it does, I'll just call you knothead. But with affection. You'll be my sweet little Knothead sporting the goose egg on her forehead," he teased, dodging the thick manuscript that came flying his way.

"Did you bring me anything?" she asked expectantly.

"Hmph," Jiraiya snorted impatiently. He truly had turned the girl into a spoiled rotten brat. But he had brought her a frozen butterscotch latte for her morning coffee treat. He pulled it from behind his back to hand it to her. An amused chuckle could not be withheld as she reached for it with greedy grasping fingers like a child. She positively glowed. "So have two..."

Mizuki gawked at him with her eyes and mouth in the shape of an O after he made an obscene gesture referring to sex. She physically recoiled, scoffing loudly in exasperation. For a moment she refused to say anything as she silently glared at him through anger narrowed eyes. The blush on her cheeks deepened as she sipped the cold drink. "No! We haven't done _that!"_ she spat at him acidly to relay that he had offended her terribly. She folded her hands on the green blotter, taking time to closely investigate the white-haired man standing on the other side of her desk. Despite being somewhere in his early fifties, he was still incredibly handsome with a lineless face, strong square jaw, and mischievous dark eyes. If he would quit being such an oversexed jerk, he might be able to find a decent woman with whom to have a real relationship. She tapped her forefinger against her temple as she allowed her thoughts to ruminate on the man. "Jiraiya," she said, her voice firm, almost motherly as she held his steady gaze. "Have you ever thought about...I don't know...NOT being a pervert?"

Jiraiya threw back his head to laugh. His laughter was long and loud, so sincere and intense that it made his belly hurt. Once he was finally able to recover, he wiped away the tears that had formed in his eyes. "Oh, my dear, I haven't laughed like that in ages. Mizuki, please do be serious. Me not being a pervert would be like...well..." he paused, holding his chin between his thumb and forefinger as his eyes rolled upward in his search for the right words. He sighed, allowing a brief chuckle of complete amusement to roll from his chest. "Well, Mizuki, sweetheart, asking me not to be a pervert would be like asking me to not to breathe. It's just who I am and I can't help but be true to myself."

"Ugh," she grumbled in defeat. Rolling her eyes in despair, she decided to just be quiet and enjoy her drink.

"But seriously, you two really seem to have gotten your shit together and things are coming along nicely. I'm happy for you," he proclaimed, leaning down to kiss the red mark on her forehead. "I'll walk you down the aisle at your wedding."

"Wait!" she exclaimed, choking on her drink after inhaling when she should not have. Sputtering and coughing, she struggled to eject the coffee from her windpipe. "Let's not be too hasty. Marriage? Marriage has never been a _thing_ for either of us. We just couldn't - "

"Don't be an idiot!" Jiraiya snapped at her, thumping her mercilessly on the sore spot on her head that he had just tenderly pecked. He ignored her cry of pain, summarily dismissing her fiery glare of doom while she rubbed the area that throbbed with agonizing discomfort. "That was then. This is now. Things are different now, wouldn't you agree?"

"Well, yes, but...marriage?" she protested, her voice rising to a whine. The idea of being bound in Holy Matrimony had never appealed to her. Naruto had made his negative views on the whole concept quite transparent as well. No matter how happy it started it, it seemed like the matrimony inevitably turned to acrimony and everyone lived miserably ever after. Just being able to maintain a committed, ongoing relationship outside of marriage would be a victory for them. Talking of marriage at this early stage in their reconciliation was just too much too soon and made her want to run for the hills in terror.

"Anyway," he said to signal the finality of the present topic of discussion. "What's the plans for tonight?" He overlooked her reaction of physically bristling from his intent to pry. "I know you two have a date. Come on! Out with it!"

"I don't know," she mumbled, feeling a bit chagrined. They had agreed to go out on a date and had settled for meeting in the bar of the hotel at seven, but that was as far as their plans had gone. "Maybe dinner and a movie?"

"Oh, for god's sake, Mizuki," Jiraiya chided her like a disappointed father. "That kind of humdrum boring date just wouldn't do for the two of you."

"Then what do you suggest?" she demanded, leaning back in her chair with her hands folded across her abdomen. She would be delighted to hear his suggestion. Upon seeing the naughty twinkle in his black eyes, she knew it was time to rescind her invitation. "Never mind. We'll figure something out for ourselves."

~...~

Mizuki impatiently glanced at her watch. 6:30. Exhaling noisily to show her annoyance, she rolled her eyes then allowed them to settle on the editor of the publishing company who was finding it difficult to shut the hell up. The woman had been talking nonstop for two hours. This was supposed to have been a short meeting. They had arrived early at the woman's office, walking through the doors at quarter after four for their four thirty meeting. The reason for the impromptu meeting was to deliver Jiraiya's finished manuscript and to discuss his next novel. Thirty minutes. It was supposed to have only taken thirty minutes to hand over the completed novel and hash out a premise along with a rough outline of the next. It was an erotic novel for god's sake. How involved could the plot be? It was basically a whole lot of sex with a little bit of story mixed in to hold the sex scenes together. But no. For some reason, the President of the publishing company had attended this meeting to offer his input which amounted to grunts of approval or disapproval while he warily eyed one of his top cash cows. Mizuki was completely ignored by both the publisher and the President which suited her just fine, but she was still trapped in the meeting.

"What about the story being about two people who loved each dearly but couldn't stop hurting each other? They try time and time again to get their relationship together but they just can't. Instead they just have make-up sex all the time in addition to the sex they were already having," Jiraiya offered hoping they would accept the storyline. He nervously glanced at Mizuki who appeared to have not heard a single word as she checked her watch for the seventh time in five minutes. He knew she needed to leave. She had more important things to attend to at the moment. In his desperation he had suggested something he was very familiar with and could write with no problem. Besides, it wasn't like this was the first time he had drawn on the relationship of his favorite couple for inspiration. He had even used their actual escapades in his books that the couple had experienced thanks to Naruto's willingness to boast about their sexual adventures. The boy had been shockingly closed mouth since his arrival and had not contacted Jiraiya directly at all. Why should he? Naruto was here to see Mizuki and repair their relationship. As far as he was concerned, his part in the matter was done so there was no need to talk to Naruto about anything. The only reason he talked to Mizuki was because he had to talk to her. He did see her at work everyday, and she was the person who took care of him and everything in his life. Catching a glimpse of her out of the corner of his eye, he could see her agitation growing when her scowl deepened and her eyebrows drew together to form a single angry line over her nose.

"No. I don't like that," the President said, actually speaking for the first time in the meeting.

"Well, son of a bitch," Jiraiya grumbled, scrubbing his hands over his face as his annoyance level suddenly skyrocketed as well. Leaning back in his chair, he laced his fingers behind his head and counted to ten as he stared at the ceiling. After losing his temper many times and getting fired by a few publishers, Mizuki had tried to help him harness his anger by suggesting a few anger management techniques. She would be proud of him actually using one of those tactics if she were paying attention. "Mizuki?"

"Yes," she responded obediently, sitting up straight in her chair.

"Get out," he ordered her. He smiled at her as she blinked repeatedly with a vacant look in her forest green eyes.

"I want you to leave...now," he ordered her. If he couldn't save himself from this meeting from hell, he would enable her to escape. Throwing a fiery glare at the President and then the publisher, he said, "I can handle this. They're not going to like anything we suggest anyway so you might as well leave."

"Yes, sir," she rejoined, attempting to hide her elated grin. She would kiss him if it were not inappropriate, unprofessional, and somewhat dangerous considering who she would be kissing. After offering her boss a hug of gratuity, she practically fled from the room in her four-inch heels. She stopped by the reception desk to ask if she could use the phone. With a polite smile, the receptionist pushed the phone over to her so it could be more easily accessed. She dialed the hotel phone number after consulting the piece of paper she had excavated out of her purse. Once the front desk attendant picked up, she asked for Naruto's room to swiftly be connected.

"Hello?"

"Hey, I'm sorry. I was in a meeting that ran late," she gushed without allowing him to get a word in edgewise.

"It's okay. So do you want to meet a little bit later?" he asked.

"No," she sighed, suddenly feeling exhausted. The mental stress had taken a physical toll on her leaving her tired and completely drained of all energy.

"Oh...well then - "

"Wait!" she exclaimed after hearing the disappointment and tinge of hurt in his voice. "I didn't mean I didn't want to see you at all. I just don't want to go out. How about you come to my apartment? I'll cook dinner for you, and we'll watch a movie."

Jiraiya could just go to hell. A boring date would be perfect for tonight.

"O-okay," Naruto stuttered. "Give me your address."

Mizuki gave him her address and requested he come over in about an hour. An hour should be enough time for her to get home, shower, and throw something together for dinner. She could just prepare his favorite ramen. Not only would that be quick and easy, she knew he would like the food. Her timing had been spot on because she was just setting the bottle of red wine and two glasses on the coffee table in front of the couch when he rang the doorbell. He could pick out the movie while she was dishing up the food. Despite the unexpected change of plans, so far the evening was going well. Opening the door to be greeted with a charming fox like grin by the handsome blonde wearing a black t-shirt and tight jeans, she was sure this evening could only get better.

"For you, my dear," he announced, handing her the half dozen crimson red carnations tied together with a white ribbon.

"Thank you," she returned, taking the flowers and stepping aside to invite him inside. Pointing to the tall cabinet stuffed full of books, CDs, and DVDs, she requested that he pick out a movie while she put the flowers in a vase and got the food. By the time she made it to the couch with the steaming bowls of ramen, the wine was poured and the movie was ready to be watched.

At first no words were spoken since their mouths were full of food and the movie was just beginning. Naruto had chosen one that he hoped they could both enjoy. It involved a little bit of everything from action to romance.

"I'm glad you invited me over," he commented once his second bowl of ramen was empty.

"I figured you'd enjoy the ramen. Still your favorite no matter how many tons of it you've eaten in your lifetime so far," she joked, scooting closer to him so she could lay her head on his shoulder. She was full and happy - and sleepy.

"Not just for the ramen," he said, kissing the top of her head. He pulled her forward to slide his arm around her shoulders. "There was something I wanted to talk to you about. I thought it best for us to have privacy when we do so."

"Oh?" She had nearly choked on her wine. Coughing lightly, she leaned forward to place her glass on the table. Her trembling hand could not be trusted to hold onto the glass securely. His serious tone had made her terribly anxious.

"When I came here, I had no real hopes for the future...where this might be going. I thought it best to see if you would even talk to me before I entertained thoughts of us being together," he said, his voice uncharacteristically monotone and devoid of emotion.

Mizuki's chest tightened. It felt as if her ribcage was closing in, squeezing her lungs which prevented her from breathing. "So what are your thoughts now?"

"I'm not sure. I think we both know neither one of us is really cut out for marriage." He sighed loudly, avoiding looking at her. What was he thinking bringing this up before he had even made a decision of what to do? He was hoping he would open his mouth and the words would just come to him. So far that was not working out too well for him. He wished he had just kept his mouth shut and enjoyed the evening with her.

"That's true," she agreed, hearing him release a loud puff of air as if he had been holding his breath. "Don't you think it's just a little too early to push things?"

"It is but..." He paused grasping for the correct words so he would not say something that would ruin their progress and alienate her entirely. "But we can't keep going like this forever. We can't just keep dating each other indefinitely. I have to go back home and you have your life here and..."

Mizuki inhaled a shaky breath. She stood up from the couch unable to bear the weight of his arm on her shoulders. Crossing her arms over her chest, she walked to the window to stare out into the night. The streetlights prevented her from seeing the stars so she stared at a blank sky. She knew they were there, hiding behind the invisible barrier created by the artificial illumination of the lights below.

"Mizuki, I love you," he proclaimed, standing up from the couch to pace behind it. His whole body seemed to shake from the inside out which made him grow antsy and uncomfortable. "Throughout out relationship, no matter what happened, that was the one thing I've always been sure of."

"But?"

"But," he repeated, turning his back to her to lean against the couch. He could not bear to gaze at her stiff back, unable to read her emotions since she was hiding her face from him. Why wasn't this easier? Things had been going so well between. However, his time here was drawing to a close, and they needed to make a decision as to how they were going to proceed with their relationship. "But what are we going to do?"

"I don't know," she replied, her voice low to hide the tremor caused by withholding her tears.

Where do they go from here? They were too old to play around like silly kids. Writing to each other and being pen pals reeked of immaturity and was totally unrealistic. A long distance relationship was out of the question because they could not be traveling often to see each other due to work and other responsibilities. Not to mention, both of them were too high maintenance emotionally (and physically) for that kind of relationship. If they decided to live together, where would they live? Who would give up their career to move to where the other lived? Would they both give up the lives they had made to be together and move somewhere else entirely? The questions were easy. The answers not so much.

"I love you too, Naruto. That's never been our problem. Right now, we're facing problems we did not have before and that makes this so damn difficult," she murmured, leaning forward to lay her overly warm forehead against the cool pane of glass. Her head ached, and she felt slightly dizzy. Exhaustion swamped her like a sudden big wave in the ocean overcomes an unsuspecting swimmer.

Naruto walked over to her, unable to stay away from her. Loneliness, the same heart breaking loneliness that had settled into his chest as he watched her walk away over two years ago, had come flooding back to him. He hated that feeling then, and he hated it more now. Refusing to suffer from the crushing sense of alienation when she was in the very same room as him, he reached out to her laying his hand on her shoulder. His fingers flexed to grasp her shoulder firmly in case she tried to wrench away from his touch. When she did not move, he stepped closer to slide his arms around her body to hold her in a bear hug. Although he knew she would not leave because they were in her apartment, he did not want to risk her getting away from him in this instant.

"Stay with me," she requested, looking at his reflection in the window. "Just for tonight, don't leave me alone."

Naruto turned her so he could gaze into her eyes. He placed his hands on either side of her face to keep her from looking away, although he doubted she would since her eyes were firmly locked on his. Seeing the tender expression in her eyes, the vulnerability and the sadness, he closed his eyes to lower his lips to hers. Not only did he want to kiss her, she seemed to need his kiss at the moment. His lips glided softly over hers, testing her receptiveness. When her hands rested on his hips and she leaned into him, he answered the invitation by fitting his lips to hers to kiss her demurely with a closed mouth but with wide open emotions.

Mizuki allowed the tears to well and overflow her eyelids, running down her cheeks to wet his as he kissed her. Her fingers clenched and unclenched on his sides, wanting to bring him closer, to smash her body into his with brute force. However, at this given point in time, she could not even bring herself to part her lips to persuade him to deepen the kiss. The pure kiss conveying his fierce emotions was enough for her. He was allowing her to feel his love, joy, need, heartbreak, betrayal, anger ; mixing the emotions he was presently experiencing and any that he had ever felt for her. The kiss tapered off before his emotions overpowered her completely. She was left sucking in gulps of air in uneven inhalations. Laying her head against his broad chest, she realized she was not the only one trembling and struggling to breathe.

"Where is your bedroom?" he asked her, stroking her back in a comforting motion.

Mizuki mutely pointed to her right not wanting to open her mouth for fear she might say something stupid in her state of confusion and fatigue. She submissively allowed him to pull her in the direction she had indicated, holding his hand as he led her to her bedroom. Not sure of his goal and not really caring, she succumbed to the gentle pressure of his hands on her shoulders and sat down on the bed. Her eyes began to adjust to the dim light of her room which consisted of the light from the street lamps filtering through the blinds. She watched him as he rounded the end of her bed to get to the other side before he plunked his body down onto the pillowy mattress. When he patted his chest in a silent request for her lay her head down, she smiled and willingly complied by snuggling up next to him before putting her head down over his heart.

"I don't remember you being this obedient before," he teased her, receiving a painful poke in the ribs. "Except when tied up." He got poked again, much harder this time. "Ow!"

"You deserved that," she giggled, burrowing her face into his soft t-shirt. "Be still. I was comfortable and you made me move."

"Zuzu, for tonight, I just want to hold you and act like this is how we'll be forever. I don't want to talk about the future. I don't want to think about the past. I want to just be still and lie here with you," he said, encircling her body with his arms. He kissed her on the forehead and then her lips when she turned them up to him.

"For tonight," she repeated, patting his chest. Closing her eyes, she draped her arm over his abdomen. It felt really great to held in his arms. She relished feeling warm, safe, and comfortable. If only tonight really could last forever.


	5. Chapter 5

Mizuki rolled over expecting to come into contact with a warm, hard body. She yelped as her body dropped off the bed and came into contact with the cold, hard floor instead. That was not the wake up call she had been hoping for. Grumbling to herself like a grumpy old lady, she hauled herself up from the floor. After plopping down onto the comforting softness of her bed, she closed her eyes to shut out the blinding sun. Blinding sun? What time is it? Her eyes popped open, and she sat bolt upright in the bed. It was far too bright for it to be usual wake up time.

"Shit!" she exclaimed, grabbing the digital alarm clock off of the nightstand. 10:32! Damn! She was late...soooo terribly late. Not that her boss would really care of course but that was not the point. Hopping off of the bed, she attempted to run for the door. Unfortunately for her kneecap, she clipped the post at the end of the bed. Double damn! That hurt! Crying out in pain, she bent down to rub her assaulted knee. Hobbling toward the door like a crippled woman on a mission, her progress was once again halted by an unbelievably cute blonde holding a tray of food while sporting her red frilly apron and jeans. Nice! Now that was something worth waking up to.

"Are you all right?" he asked, setting the tray on the dresser to attend to his injured companion.

"Am I all right?!" she screeched indignantly, pushing his hands away as he tried to inspect her knee. "I'm late!"

"No, you're not," he corrected her, lifting her up into his arms in a bridal carry despite the fact the bed was two steps away.

"Naruto, I need to go. I should already be at work and...would you just...please... " She tried to argue while pushing against his chest, but her struggling prompted him to hold her more securely against his body.

"Please, what?" he questioned her, his blue eyes glittering deviously as they held her jewel toned green eyes.

"Um...uh...well..." For the life of her she could not remember what she was supposed to be doing or where she had been in such a big hurry to go. Her resolve to be a good employee had fallen victim to the beguiling blue eyes that captivated her.

"I called Jiraiya. I had told him that you were going to be late, but he told me to tell you to take the day off," he explained, lowering her to the bed.

"Oh," she muttered, feeling the warmth of a blush creeping over her cheeks. She watched Naruto as he retrieved the tray from where he had left it to bring it to her. Breakfast in bed! "You can cook?"

"Yes, I can cook," he responded huffily, setting the tray on the bed beside her. "Bon appétit, Princess."

"Come join me," she invited him, propping a pillow against the headboard next to her for him. She took the single purple carnation out of the vase bringing it to her nose to inhale its spicy scent. "Purple?"

"The color of passion," he answered succinctly, bringing a forkful of the scrambled eggs to her mouth.

Mizuki smiled at him. If he was passionately in love with her, she was so much the better for it so there was nothing left to say. There were more pressing matters at the moment that involved the feast on the tray. She opened her mouth eagerly to be fed. The eggs were fluffy, well seasoned, and absolutely delicious. Her covetous eyes watched as he bypassed her mouth with the perfectly crisped piece of bacon to cram it into his own mouth.

"Here," he said, bringing a slice to her mouth.

"You're a really good cook," she mumbled around the salty, fatty delight as she crunched away.

"Thank you," he returned as he chewed half of a slice of toast slathered with butter.

"Any plans for today since I have the day off?" She took the time while he was answering to stuff her face with the remarkable food.

"Got a bikini?" He laughed at her when her eyes went wide and round, but she refused to be startled enough to allow it to interfere with her feeding frenzy. "I rented a boat for the day. We're going sailing."

"A row-boat on the lake?" she asked offhandedly, taking a sip of the orange juice to rid herself of a few dry crumbs of toast that clung stubbornly to her throat. She had often envied the couples taking excursions together on the lake; skimming across the still water in their little boats for two with ducks swimming along beside them. It looked terribly hokey and ridiculous but romantic and enjoyable all at the same time.

"A cabin cruiser on the ocean," he answered pointedly. He was dismayed by her unwillingness to think bigger. Or was it an inability? Had suffering the crushing heart ache of two years killed her ability to make high goals for fear of not reaching them? That didn't seem possible. He had never known of her to be squeamish in the face of adversity. Mediocrity did not become her either. Perhaps she had been too busy getting her life together to dream a little dream much less a big one.

"Seriously?" At this moment, she had successfully been awestruck so that the fork was paused in midair on the path to her mouth.

"Seriously," he answered, pushing the fork toward her mouth so she could devour the food. "Zuzu, tell me something...what do want?"

Mizuki put the fork down on the tray before pushing it away. She thought for a minute, despite the fact that they had already been over this a dozen times. Apparently there was a certain answer he wanted to hear. Maybe it was possible she was not being completely truthful with herself. It had been a long time since she had considered what she really, REALLY wanted out of life. She had been stuck in survival mode for two years. Recalling how she and Naruto had gazed at the stars and even wished upon the falling ones, she realized that it was time that she should reach for them as well. She opened her mouth to speak, raising her eyes to meet the intense gaze of the blue ones that had been concentrating on her face. "What I want is..." She struggled for the words, convulsively swallowing to rid herself of the lump in her throat. "I want you. I want to be with you more than anything. One of these days I want to get married, have a family..." She stood up from the bed, walking to the end of it to pace back and forth as she spoke. "I still want to own a bookstore, but I want to work in publishing too. I want to live in Konoha, but I enjoy traveling as well. I love being Jiraiya's assistant, but -" The erratic flow of words stopped at the same time her pacing halted. "I had no idea there were so many things I wanted." She laughed because she was not sure what else she should do. Looking at the bewildered man on her bed, she was thrilled that having him in her life again was an attainable dream.

Naruto smiled at her. He was leaving the day after tomorrow. Would there be any way to figure out their dilemma before then? What he wanted was to take her home with him, to begin their life together as soon possible. Marriage would happen some day, just not today - or tomorrow or even the day after that - but one day. Until then, what do they do? His head was beginning to ache and time was continuing to drift away from them. Standing up from the bed, he circled around the end, careful to avoid the bedpost as he reached for her.

MIzuki held her breath, allowing her eyes to slowly close as he leaned toward her once he had firmly grasping her shoulders. Her whole body prickled with excitement as his velvety lips pressed to hers for an innocent, pure kiss. It was like receiving her first kiss all over again. Not just her first kiss from him, but her first kiss ever. She felt that same thrill of experiencing the unknown which still sent a tingle down her spine, The tingling sensation spread through her belly making her feel as if she had been set on fire. When his lips lifted from hers she kept her eyes closed, savoring his kiss that lingered on her lips.

"Pack your bikini and a change of clothes. We're going out for an overnight trip," he told her, placing a kiss on her forehead. "I'll be waiting for you in the living room."

"Okay." Mizuki hurriedly gathered her swimsuit, a nightgown, her undergarments, and some clothes for tomorrow as instructed. She stuffed them into a backpack as if she were a little girl leaving for a sleepover at a friend's house. Foregoing the make up but grabbing a brush and few basic toiletries like toothpaste and a toothbrush, she was ready to go.

After a quick stop by his hotel for Naruto to get a few necessities, they were on their way to the harbor. Boats of all shapes and sizes were anchored at the dock. Some boats like the one or two person dinghies were small enough to be sitting on the outlying piers while other sea worthy vessels like yachts were tethered to posts further out in deeper water. The cabin cruiser was more of mid size boat with a bedroom, kitchen, and small living area under the deck. There was also something akin to a bathroom complete with a shower. The fridge had already been stocked with food and drinks so Mizuki helped herself to one of the bottles of water and took one to Naruto as well while he received some last minute instructions from the owner of the boat. She moved to the helm, opening the door of the completely enclosed space to go inside. Sitting in the chair that was not in front of the wheel, she waited for Naruto to come in to begin their ocean voyage.

"Where are we going?" Mizuki asked when Naruto slid into the seat behind the wheel.

"No where in particular," he answered, starting the engine. "I figured we'd just go out a few miles, until we're far away from civilization, nothing but ocean for miles in any direction."

"Until it seems like no one but us exists?" she questioned him, staring straight ahead at the sun that was lowering itself toward the ocean. She could barely wait to see how magnificent the sunset would be since they would be watching it at what seemed to be the end of the earth.

"Exactly," he replied, giving her one of his charming smiles that made her heart forget to beat momentarily.

Mizuki reached over to him, placing her hand over his that was lying loosely on the large metal steering wheel. She could feel his fingers twitching nervously under hers. Without looking at him, she asked, "What's wrong?"

"Tonight will be my last night with you," he answered without bothering to soften the impact of the words. What else could he say? He felt as if she were squeezing his very heart when her fingers constricted around his hand to hold it securely. Somehow he found the ability to keep talking when it probably would have been best for him to keep quiet. "When we return tomorrow, I will have to go straight to the gallery to assist with packing up the exhibit. I will be leaving the day after tomorrow. I-I-" Then his voice suddenly deserted him. His fingers were going numb from her holding his hand so tightly.

"I know," she mumbled, barely able to force the words out without shedding tears.

"We haven't figured out a damn thing," he muttered angrily, beating the fist he made with his other hand on the polished walnut wood dash filled with dials, levers, and switches.

"It isn't a now or never offer, Naruto," she admonished him, releasing his hand because she could no longer feel her own fingertips. "I won't stop wanting to be with you when you leave." She sighed loudly, standing up to slide her arms around his neck. "We've got a lot to work out. Love seems to find a way. Obviously it won't be an easy or fast solution, but we'll find a way to be together. Okay?"

"Okay," he grudgingly rejoined, slipping his arm around her waist to hold her close to him while he steered with one hand on the wheel. Patience had been a personality trait he had always struggled with and had never really developed to the best of his ability. He had decided long ago that it was just not something he wanted. However, the person he wanted most in this world had always tested his patience in one way or another so it was actually something he really needed. Long ago he should have realized that she was the woman he would want for all time. Instead, he had just chalked it up to her being a fickle, irritating female and summarily dropped her to find so-called 'greener pastures' which meant he just wanted a woman who would acquiesce to his every wish. As always, he would get bored with that too then rush back to her for another dose of his one true addiction, his sweet Mizuki.

"Stop thinking so much," she chastised him, kissing his forehead. "If this is our last night together, let's enjoy it."

"You're right." He kissed her cheek before she wiggled out of his grip to go below deck to the bedroom. During her absence he grew antsy wondering what she could be doing. When she returned wearing her plain black bikini and carrying two beers, he was glad that she had not been lying on the bed crying her eyes out.

Mizuki had already taken the tops off of the frosty bottles. After handing her Captain one, she sat back down in her chair to enjoy the ride to wherever. She propped her feet on the expensive looking control panel to stare out across the waves that were a reddish-orange from the sun that was about to dip below the surface of the water. "The sunset is even more gorgeous from here."

"Yes, it is. Never thought I'd be riding into the sunset with the woman I love but..."

"And this is so much better than a horse."

"Cheers, my dear," he said, raising his bottle to her. He waited for her to tap her bottle to his to make the satisfying clink to signify a toast.

"To us, my love."

"May this be the beginning of something wonderful."

Oh, but something wonderful had already been started many days ago.

The rest of the relatively short ride was spent in a comfortable silence as they watched the sun sink into the never-ending ocean. As darkness engulfed them, Naruto decided it was as a good a time as any to weigh anchor and prepare to stay put for the night. They prepared dinner together, carefully avoiding the subject of the future by talking about the immediate present. They discussed seasoning as they cooked, the best temperature to grill the steaks to, and how the vegetables should be prepared. It was so nice and so incredibly mundane to be making their meal together and arguing over exactly how to best cook the food. Afterward, they even washed the dishes together before taking their after dinner beers to the deck. Star gazing made their world seem so much bigger, limitless, never-ending. The questions surrounding their existing problem were as numerous as the stars. Hopefully the solutions to that problem would be just as plentiful once they found them. Being together seemed like such an easy thing and maybe for some people it was easy but it never had been for them. Too late did that realize that their main obstacle was themselves.

Mizuki shivered, pulling together the lapels of the oversized sweater she had thrown on over her swimsuit. Although the breeze was only slightly cool, it raised goose bumps over her skin as it brushed over her sun warmed skin. She moved closer to Naruto, pressing her body to his side. Her body fit itself against his when he moved his arm to pull her in front of him to hold her between himself and the safety rails on the side of the boat as they looked out over the velvet-black ocean that lapped at the bottom of the cruiser. A sigh of contentment passed her lips as she found the warmth she was seeking in his embrace.

"All I want is to wake up to your sleepy smile and messy bedhead every morning," he said, kissing her cheek. "I'll laugh when you hit your knees on the bed or trip over your nightgown that's lying on the floor from where I undressed you to make love to you the night before."

"Naruto," she whined, growing uncomfortably hot due to embarrassment.

"I want to call you at work just to tell you I love you or stop by on a random Tuesday to take you to lunch. I want more nights where we prepare dinner together then fight over who does the dishes. I want to run you a bubble bath and light a hundred candles around the tub so you can relax after a bad day. I want..." He paused, turning her to face him. He held her face between his hands, lowering his lips to hers for a brief but emotion laden kiss. "I want you. I want to be with you always. I want to wake up to you every morning. I want to go to sleep with you every night. I want to live with you and die with you. I love you so much."

Mizuki could feel the hot tears sneaking past her eyelids to travel in zigzags down her cheeks. The brisk ocean breeze whisked them away, cooling their remnants into salty trails on her face. Her hands moved around his hips, enclosing his waist. Her fingers laced together to rest in the small of his back while pulling him closer to her. She kept her eyes closed, fearing if she looked at him in this moment she would spontaneously combust with the overpowering emotions that were inundating her.

"It struck me when I was holding you last night that I never made love to you. I fucked you and fucked you hard many times. I used your body selfishly and thought I was doing you a favor by giving you orgasms while I was getting as many as I could. Can I...look at me, my love," he requested, massaging her cheeks because her face was so tense he could feel the tautness of the muscles under his palms.

Mizuki opened her teary eyes. Her eyes almost glowed in the moonlight, the pale white light reflecting off of their wetness. She pressed her palms to the back of his hands as if assisting him with holding her together. Her whole body was shaking, and she was beginning to wonder if she would fall apart from the sadness and happiness that was simultaneously ripping at her nerves, destroying them little by little. Her eyes met his that looked as black as the water in the dim light.

"I love you too. But I can't stand this," she whimpered, her words being abruptly interrupted by a pitiful sob. "My heart is breaking but the love I feel is so...it's so..."

Naruto pressed his lips to hers believing only actions could express their current emotions appropriately. His fingers trembled as his hands slid down her neck, then down her chest to skim the roundness of her breasts before moving around to her back. With one pull, he untied the thin straps that held her bikini top around her chest. Reaching a little higher, he tugged on the straps that loosened the top from around her neck and freed it completely. He allowed it to fall to the deck, not really caring if the wind carried it away or not. If it disappeared altogether, he would buy her another swimsuit. His hands slid down her sides to pull her against him. He sighed when he felt her pert nipples contact his chest, hardening into stiff peaks that poked at the upper part of his ridged abdomen.

"I want to make love to you," he whispered, freeing her hair from the bun she had kept it in to prevent the wind from tangling it. His fingers invaded her silken locks giving her more to fear from him twisting it up than the breeze blowing around them.

"Is there really a difference?" she asked, arousal growing deep within her so exponentially it made her feel woozy.

"I believe there is a difference. I think we should explore that concept more fully...together." His hands extracted themselves from her hair to drift down her back to her round rear to grasp a cheek in each hand. He grunted in her ear as he lifted her off of her feet, her nipples sliding over his to excite him even more. Staggering backwards, he somehow found his way to the cushioned lounger that was built into the deck of the boat. Although the two person lounger's primary purpose was sunbathing, tonight it would be where he made love to her for the first time. They had sex many times in the past, but this would be a first for them. He knew it was not so much the act itself but the intent behind it that would be the defining factor of love-making. Tonight he wanted to show her how much he loved her. He wanted to pour his emotions into her while bringing her to a climax over and over. The last thing he was concerned about at this time was his own orgasm or how good it would feel to him.

Mizuki yelped and bit her lip when he rolled her over onto her back before lifting his body from hers. She kept her eyes on him as he sat up between her legs while his hands explored her body on their way to remove her bikini bottoms. He never looked quite as beautiful to her as he did at this very instant. His face was relaxed, his eyes soft and dreamy from the intense emotion he felt yet focused in his desire to please her. She closed her eyes and pressed her lower back into the cushion under her to push her breasts into his palms. When he raked his thumbs across the sensitive nipples, she arched her back to raise her lower half into him.

"Mizuki," he groaned as her body grazed his. The contact had relieved the painful ache of his throbbing member for a moment but made him want her even more. Refusing to rush, unwilling to take her hurriedly to relieve his own pulsating arousal, he continued to search her body with his hands. He analyzed her reactions to find the touches that pleased her the most. Pinching her nipples, elicited a gasp from her lips and brought a grimace of discomfort to her face. To apologize and find a more appropriate gesture, he hovered over her lowering his lips to one of the stiff pieces of flesh to lick it liberally. He liked this reaction much better when she sighed his name and pushed her nipple into his mouth. Sucking it gently, he was rewarded with a moan and pushing of her hips into his.

Mizuki received a guttural groan from him which prompted her to thrust her lower half at him again to rock her hips against his hardness. She wanted him to make love to her, to be inside of her. She could barely wait for him to take her and make her his once again. The concept of him making love to her enchanted her, excited her, and even frightened her. Just plain sex had always been so easy. Sex in its basic form was nothing more than a physical act that required no real exchange of emotions. She had always held back, carefully keeping her emotions in check. It had been important to her to not feel anything except physical pleasure. At times, her heartstrings had been strummed by him, and she had begun to feel something; something so much deeper and more meaningful than a climax. Her emotions had been stirred up and drawn out, making her want to get lost in him, to become a part of him. That had scared the hell out of her so she had quickly retreated from those feelings, getting a tight grip on her emotions to lock them away again. Tonight she planned to completely lose control. She had already untapped those emotions and planned to let him have them all. All the love, the hatred, the joy, the sadness, the past, the present, the future - it would all be his. Her heart, her total being, would be his tonight.

Naruto slid his hands down her belly, his fingers curling under the top edge of her bikini bottoms. He slowly, teasingly slipped them over her hips. His palms flattened against her thighs as he continued to remove her bottoms so that he could fully enjoy the satiny smooth texture of her skin all the way down to her feet. After a bit of awkwardness that ensued when he removed his shorts and underwear, he moved back between her legs before leaning over her. For a long moment, he gazed into her eyes as she lay still beneath him.

"Mizuki, do you really want to be mine?" he asked her while delving into her eyes with his. He looked at her openly and honestly, allowing everything he was feeling to show on his face and in his eyes. Seeing that she was starting to cry again, his eyelids lowered as he bent his head to kiss her. The kiss was probing, comforting, and given in an effort to allow her time to recover from the tidal wave of emotions that threatened to drown her. He nestled his face in the crook of her neck, listening to her uneven, raspy breathing.

"Yes, yes, I'm ready to be yours...forever," she added, waiting for him to lift his head to look at her.

"I love you," he murmured, positioning himself at her entrance in readiness.

"I love you too," she returned, her hands clutching his shoulder blades as he pressed into her. Her mouth opened into a mute cry as he gradually slid into her, filling her inch by delicious inch while pleasure spiralled and coiled into tight knots throughout her body. When he was completely inside of her, she took a deep, tremulous breath before urging him to move. She held her breath as he pulled his hips back, almost removing himself from her body before pushing back down into her. The bliss that had built up earlier exploded when the tip of his manhood bumped her cervix. The pleasure skipped across every excited nerve ending making her body feel as if it were on fire, being consumed by him. As he continued to move inside of her, she held onto to him for dear life being carried away by the strong current emotions that mixed with the whirlpool of ecstasy swirling inside of her. Just when she thought she was done for, about to suffocate from it all, he brought her back with a kiss or a call of her name. So this was what it was like to experience the art of making love. The heightened emotional aspect made the sex act so much more passionate and meaningful. It was the most agonizing and exquisite sensation she had ever experienced. She could feel herself melding into him, becoming part of him. Not only were her arms and legs entangled with his but her heart was becoming hopelessly enmeshed with his not to be easily separated. She did not want to be separated from him. It was time to give away a part of herself in exchange for taking a part of him back with her. They were not just sharing their physical bodies right now but their very souls.

"Mizuki, are you ready?" he asked, his labored breathing filling her ear.

"Yes," she answered, pulling his body tightly against hers as his hips continued to thrust rhythmically into her.

"Open your eyes. Look at me," he ordered, pushing the hair out of her face to get an unobstructed view of her eyes.

Mizuki opened her eyes, finding his eyes were already transfixed on her face. Her gaze locked with his, and she cried out as her arousal instantly skyrocketed in intensity. Unable to speak, she moaned to express her satisfaction while struggling to maintain visual contact. Her body tightened , preparing to fall into that fantastic abyss of pleasure as his thrusts became stilted and sharp. Finally, she could no longer hold back.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, closing her eyes. Screaming his name, she fell into that chasm of mind numbing ultimate bliss as the climax tore through her body seconds before she felt him release filling her with the essence of his body and his soul. She had received everything she had given; the pleasure, the emotions, a part of the heart and soul of her lover that would always belong to her. Sweat ran down their bodies, cooling them slightly but they shivered helplessly due to being totally spent physically and emotionally. Exchanging soft gentle kisses, they calmed each other, soothing away the rawness of being totally exposed on an emotional level.

Once he felt he had sufficiently regained his strength, Naruto picked up Mizuki in a bridal carry to take her below deck to the bed. What began as innocent caresses became an ardent investigation of skin and other sensual organs. After making love to her again, reducing her to a sobbing, writhing mass of overstimulated flesh, he took her into his arms to hold her while she cried. He did not think so highly of himself to believe that all of her tears were a result of the fantastic climax he had given her.

"Why don't you go to sleep? I won't let you go," he assured her when her arms tightened around his shoulders. Instinctively his embrace grew stronger in an effort to stop her body from quivering

"I don't want to go to sleep. It seems like time goes so much faster while we're asleep," she said, her voice shockingly smooth and tranquil in comparison to her quaking body. "I want to cherish every bit of time I have left with you...every second, every minute, every hour that I have remaining, wide awake and completely aware."

Naruto peeled her hand from his shoulder to bring her open palm to his lips. He kissed her palm before laying it over his heart. Pressing his hand against her chest to feel her heart underneath it, he closed his eyes to feel the steady thrumming under his palm.

Mizuki did the same, concentrating on the rhythm until her breathing and heartbeat matched his. She smiled to herself, wishing they could always be this in tune with each other. Although it sounded a bit corny, their hearts really were beating as one.

Throughout the night, they kissed, they touched, they whispered words of love, and they made love over and over. By the time the sun began to rise, they were still awake. After pouring themselves a cup of coffee, they went to the deck to enjoy the sunrise together. Naruto had put on his pajama bottoms and Mizuki had put on his top. They sat on the two person lounger they had made love on last night. They huddled together, wrapped in a blanket to dispel the early morning chill, to watch the dawn of a new day. The ocean took on the same color of the bright golden sun that was the same color of Naruto's hair, as the great globe seemed to rise out of the water itself.

"We have to go back soon," he whispered in her ear, hugging her briefly.

"I know," she rejoined, sighing sadly.

"I want this to work. I want to be with you...and only you...for the rest of my life." He nuzzled his nose into her hair, inhaling deeply as if he would ever forget her scent of jasmine and vanilla.

"Things will work out. After all, the most difficult step of reconciliation is behind us." She laid her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes to fend off the radiant sun rising into the sky.

Naruto was not quite as confident that the most arduous part of the journey in their new relationship was over. To him it seemed there would be many more trials and tribulations to come, the biggest hurdle to cross being how to be together in the same place. Then there would be the tricky and treacherous day-to-day living, the true testing of their relationship - the part where they had failed so miserably before. Glancing down at her face, he could see that she was not as sure of that as she had pretended to be. Her forehead had formed deep ridges of worry and her eyebrows were drawn together over her nose in response to her thinking deeply. Placing his hand against her cheek, he tipped her head back so he could kiss her lips. His determination to find a way to be with her found new strength. Tenacity was a virtue he possessed in abundance. When he wanted something badly enough, he would go after it with a persistance that defied human logic. Being with her was all that he wanted.


End file.
